Connect with TRB

Continuing Recurring/Non-Recurring Congestion Research

Previous Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) research efforts have explored the relative causes of urban congestion. That is, how much congestion is simply the result of too much traffic, and how much is due to incidents of various kinds? Knowledge of the causes of congestion is needed to identify and prioritize funding for the most effective improvements. For example is expansion of incident response capabilities more effective at improving travel time reliability than modifying the ramp metering system? The objective of this research project is to further refine the development of the data sets and analytical tools that allow WSDOT to understand the relative importance of different causes of congestion so that informed funding decisions may be made.